French Onion Soup - General Cooking Principles
According to legend, the famous French onion soup was invented by Louis XV. One night, the king wanted to eat and did not find in his hunting lodge anything but onions, champagne and butter. The king mixed all the ingredients and in the end turned out to be an original onion soup. Currently, the soup is prepared on vegetable or meat broth, as well as on water with the addition of bouillon cubes. Pleasant aroma is achieved thanks to the onions browned in butter. It is recommended to boil onions as long as possible on low heat. White or red dry wine, seasonings and greens are often added to the dish. Serve the soup with hot cheese or garlic croutons. By the way, grated cheese is sometimes added to the soup itself.
French Onion Soup - Preparing Food and Cookware
It is necessary to prepare the broth in advance, cut onion into rings or half rings, chop greens and garlic. It is desirable to hold the oil at room temperature. Cheese is usually rubbed on a large or medium grater. For croutons, cut the bread into thin slices and fry in the oven.
From the dishes you will need a thick-walled pan, a knife, a cutting board, a sieve, a grater and a bowl for mixing additional ingredients. French onion soup is served in clay pots or deep bowls.
French Onion Soup Recipes:
Recipe 1: French Onion Soup
The classic recipe of the popular French onion soup. The composition of the dish naturally includes onions, beef and chicken broth, red wine and spices. This soup can be prepared for everyday meals or serve for a large family dinner.
Ingredients Required:
- Onions - 4 heads;
- 6 tablespoons butter;
- Brown sugar - 1 tablespoon;
- ¾ l of chicken and beef broth;
- Half a cup of red dry wine;
- Half a loaf of white bread;
- 85-90 grams of hard cheese;
- Salt and ground black pepper - to taste;
- Bay leaf.
Cooking method:
Prepare chicken and beef broth in advance. Onions clean and cut into rings. Bread cut into thin slices on toast. In a large saucepan, melt the butter and simmer the chopped onion in it, stirring occasionally. After 12-14 minutes onions should get a golden hue and give flavor. Then pour brown sugar and cook for another minute over medium heat, stirring constantly. Pour in broths, cover the pan with a lid and bring the soup to a boil. Then make the fire minimal and cook another about 12 minutes. Next, you need to season the soup with salt and pepper, add bay leaf and pour in wine. Cooking soup for another 2-3 minutes. Fry slices of bread a bit, sprinkle grated cheese grated on a fine grater and put in the oven or microwave to melt the cheese. According to the rules, French onion soup should be served in deep clay pots and put on top of a slice of hot toast with cheese.
Recipe 2: French Onion Soup with Thyme, Brandy and Garlic Croutons
Another, no less popular version, the famous French onion soup. This soup is more saturated, fragrant and even tart, thanks to the addition of thyme and brandy (or brandy). And hot garlic croutons perfectly complement this first dish.
Ingredients Required:
- Butter - 50 g;
- Olive oil - 15 ml;
- Onions - 2 kg;
- Thyme - 1 tsp;
- Brown sugar - 1 tsp;
- One and a half liters of beef broth;
- Flour - 1 tbsp. l .;
- Dry white wine - 150 ml;
- Brandy (or cognac) - 45 ml;
- French baguette;
- Garlic clove;
- French mustard - 1 tbsp. l .;
- Grated hard cheese - 1 cup.
Cooking method:
In a thick-walled saucepan, melt the butter and add a spoonful of olive oil. Onions clean and cut into half rings. Put onion into the pan and cook it on medium heat, stirring occasionally. After 7-8 minutes we add fragrant thyme to the onions. Onions need not to fry, namely to simmer over low heat. Otherwise, it will burn and spoil the whole taste of the dish. Then cover the pan with a lid and cook the onions until it becomes golden and soft. After 20 minutes, add sugar, stir and add a little fire. Tomim onions for another 10 minutes, until he gets a brown tint. In another saucepan, bring the pre-cooked beef broth to a boil.
Pour the flour into the pan, mix everything and cook the onions for a few more minutes. Onions season with salt and pepper, pour broth and pour in wine and brandy. Turn down the heat, cover the pot with the lid and cook the soup for another 15 minutes. French baguette cut into thin slices and dry the bread in a preheated oven. Hot loaves rub garlic, spread with mustard and sprinkle with grated cheese. We warm up the grill, pour the soup into heat-resistant plates, put 1 or 2 small loafs in each. Put the plates under the grill. As soon as the cheese melts, immediately serve the French onion soup to the table.
Recipe 3: French Onion Soup with Cheese Sticks
The preparation of this dish will take at least two hours, but it's worth it. It’s not difficult to prepare a simple at first glance low-component French onion soup, but this is far from being the case. The main thing is to strictly observe the recipe and not to depart from the framework.
Ingredients Required:
- Liter of chicken or vegetable broth;
- Dry white wine - 150 ml;
- Onions - 3 large heads;
- A tablespoon of flour (for the soup itself);
- Salt;
- White bread - a few slices;
- 200 g Swiss cheese;
- 3 cloves of garlic;
- Butter - 3 tbsp. l .;
- Half a cup of milk;
- Another 75 g of butter for the sticks;
- Half a teaspoon of baking powder;
- Half a teaspoon of paprika.
Cooking method:
Onions clean and cut into thin half-rings. Garlic cloves clean and finely chop with a knife. In a saucepan, melt the butter and lay out the chopped onion. Tomim onions for about 25 minutes, then pour the flour and lay out the garlic. All mix and cook another 3 minutes. Pour wine into the pan and bring to a boil. Then pour onions with hot broth, season the soup with salt and pepper. Make the fire minimal and cook under the lid for another 10 minutes.
If there is no broth, you can use ordinary filtered water. With bread, cut off the crusts and fry in a frying pan heated with vegetable oil. Fry the bread for 2 minutes on each side until golden brown. We rub cheese on a coarse grater, pour half of it into a saucepan with soup. We mix and immediately turn off the fire. Pour French onion soup in portions. On each pot put a slice of bread, sprinkled with cheese. Put the pots in a preheated oven or in the microwave - for a minute. Heat the butter to room temperature and mix it in a bowl with grated cheese. Pour in milk, season with a mixture of paprika and salt. Pour the flour, baking powder and knead the dough. We remove it for half an hour in the fridge. Roll out the dough on a flat surface and cut into strips of 10 to 1.5 cm. Twist the strips into spirals and bake for 15 minutes in the oven on a greased baking sheet. Serve hot soup with cheese sticks and bread.
Recipe 4: French Onion Soup with Celery
Delicious and flavorful French onion soup. In addition to onions, this includes greens, garlic and celery.
Ingredients Required:
- 2 cloves of garlic;
- Rosemary;
- Leek;
- Celery stalk;
- Parsley;
- Raw egg yolks - 3 pcs.;
- Large onions - 4 pcs .;
- Vegetable oil - 50 g;
- Butter - 1 tbsp. l .;
- White dry wine - half a cup;
- Beef broth - 2 liters;
- Madera - half a cup;
- Brown sugar is a spoon;
- 100 g grated hard cheese;
- Baguette;
- Tablespoon flour.
Cooking method:
Onions cut into rings and brown in a saucepan in butter and vegetable oil with added sugar. Pour the flour, stir and weave a little more. Pour in wine, after - broth. Season the soup with salt and pepper, add chopped herbs, celery and finely chopped garlic. Bring soup to a boil and simmer for about an hour. Mix the yolks with Madera, dry the slices of bread in the oven. Pour the yolks into the soup and mix quickly. Pour the dish into portions and serve with hot toasts sprinkled with grated cheese.
Recipe 5: French onion soup with cream
This French onion soup turns out very tender with a pronounced creamy taste. Preparing a dish about half an hour from purple onions and milk.
Ingredients Required:
- Red onion - kilogram;
- Salt - 2 tsp;
- 3 raw egg yolks;
- 7 glasses of milk;
- Half a cup of cream;
- Hard grated cheese - 3 tablespoons;
- Cayenne pepper - on the tip of a knife;
- 2 tbsp. l butter;
- French roll.
Cooking method:
Peel the onions, chop finely and simmer in a saucepan with butter. You do not need to fry the onions, otherwise it will burn. Cook the onions until soft. Pour in the milk, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and boil the soup for 3-4 minutes. We rub the contents through a sieve, pour it into the pan and let it boil again. Mix yolks, grated cheese and cream. Pour the mixture into the soup, season with pepper and mix thoroughly. Cut the loaf in small slices and fry on both sides in butter. Sell French onion soup with hot croutons.
French onion soup - secrets and tips from the best chefs
It must be remembered that you can not fry onions, otherwise the soup will turn out to be bitter and tasteless. Onions need to stew to a soft state and golden color as long as possible - then the soup will turn out very tasty and fragrant.
